Day 26, What makes a good friend??

GROWING UP TOO FAST!

Time has flown and my little precious baby is not feeling so much like a baby anymore!  Can't we make the hands of time stand still– if only for a few moments, so that I can enjoy the days of being the one she depends on for everything–for just a little bit longer?  Okay, maybe not...

The day has come...she's crawling around at lightning speed, shaking the rails of her bed as though we've confined her to prison and yelling in a demanding voice when she doesn't get what she wants...  As parents of an infant, we praise everything–the first smile; the first laugh; the first time they roll over; the first tooth, the first time they sit up; the first time they crawl, the first words they speak, etc.  Then, there comes a point where they start to become independent and we wish that they could stay infants for a while longer.  Yes, I am guilty of wanting a baby around the house for a little bit longer!

Like clockwork, I got two related messages yesterday, one from a baby development site (Similac), of which I have subscribed and the other was a call from a good friend, Jennifer, asking if she could take Ila to get her first pair of walking shoes.  The message from the baby development site read:

Your baby is ready to move up in the world. She's grabbing onto the couch or coffee table to stand up, enjoy the view, and maybe even take a few (assisted) steps. At 10 months, she's eager to explore just about everything in the world around her.

I wasn't quite ready for all of this, but knew that I had to embrace the change.  I told my friend Jennifer that we could meet to choose Ila's first shoes, but almost started World War III.  It turns out that another good friend of mine had offered to get her first shoes about a month ago and I had declined.  My thought was that I didn't want to waste money because she hadn't begun to crawl yet.  At that point, she was still scooting backwards, with no signs of crawling forward.  Now it's a month later and she's pulling up on things and starting to stand for a few seconds on her own.

"You seem nice enough, but who are you?"

"Where's the Bling?

I talked to both my friends about it and hoped that we could all go together--turns out my other girlfriend wasn't available when we went.  I'm sure we'll get together soon to pick up another pair!  A girl never can have too many shoes:)  Ila seems to have her eye on those black and whit zebra print ones (below).

"How much are these?"

I tell this story because it was an emotional day for me.  I realized that my baby won't be a baby for much longer and  I could count on one hand the number of times my girls have done anything with anyone other than my husband or me.    Could this really be true?   Because of distance and life circumstances, the girls rarely get the benefit of having my friends and family spend time with them.

So today, I celebrate good friends...friends who take time from their days to make time for me and my family.  If there's one thing I've learned, it is that parents can't raise children alone.  Often times when I can not seem to reach my kids on a particular issue, a friend may just be able to say things differently and make the connection!  It really does take a village to raise a child.  Thanks to my friends for being a part of that village!

Stay tuned for day 26!